• Registration is disabled due to constant spammers. Email [email protected] and we will temporarily re-enable registration for you.

Power Rankings

NML

Well-Known Member
Just as a way to get some immersion up, thought I'd throw together a power rankings list as of now. Feel free to disagree or make ur own list or make the case for ur team to be higher. Here we go

1) Halifax - despite a couple losses, this is the team that broke the win record by six games and has a majority of its pieces back. Not crazy to think that they'll challenge their own record. The World Series still alludes them, however. Losing one of the best closers in the game probably won't help.

2) Las Vegas - reigning champs return almost everyone of note. Having already signed the top MLIFA in Zhang, LV is a lock for the playoffs. The majority of the rotation takes the step across the wrong side of 30, joining the main pieces in the bullpen. A lineup that's in its prime should overcome any drop off, however.

3) Helsingborg - there's a drop off after the top two, even though this team won 100 games. A big loss in Ice Man, coupled with a handful of contributors departing, namely the ageless Funk. However, Borg seemingly has a ton of space to work with and will fill these holes over the coming sims.

4) Cairo - they have some holes, which they'll likely fill over the next few sims, but this team could see the biggest win improvement of teams that made the playoffs. They are well positioned to challenge LV/Borg for homefield in the first round as this young core returns, hopefully improved. They need to start making their move - this team is going to get expensive soon and needs the attendance to match the salaries.

5) Buffalo - this team finished on a high, and for the first time in several years was within striking distance of the playoffs. They've already signed two of the biggest FAs in Reyes and Ichi. Almost everyone returns, and while they sit fourth now, they'll likely be passed as teams with bigger budgets fill in their gaps. Still, the young team should improve and the playoffs are possible, and might be necessary as three of their top players have opt out clauses after this season.

6) North Dakota - the kings of consistency lost two major pieces: the aforementioned Reyes and Rubio, who opted out of his contract for the second straight season. No replacements for either (at the moment) might knock them down to the giant pack of mediocrity in the SL. For the third straight season, Balbuena missed significant time, and Pinky played in the least amount of games since he was 19.

7) Lisbon - the surprise of last season, one of the smallest budgets in the league snuck into the playoff picture, dropping the play in game. They lose arguably their second best player in Romero, and will look to the rookie Kamihara to replace him. He'll need to be close, because the margins are small. Lots of young pieces should improve.

8) Buenos Aires - they fell on the wrong side of Mount 500, but still snuck into the playoffs. They lose Nelson to a career ending injury, but the rotation should still be good. A questionable bullpen could hurt, but the trio of Gold Mine, Pete, and Liu should be enough to carry the offense.

9) United Kingdom - UK had a great post-AS record after a few late trades, and nearly snuck into the playoffs despite being in 8th midway through the year. Almost everyone is back, with lots of pieces in their prime offensively. It's a very old pitching staff, however, that is continuing to drop off after their excellent 2065 season.

10) Moscow - the Mules took a huge step backward after a 103 win season in 65, winning just 83 and needing a play-in game to make the playoffs. That combined with a lot of turnover this offseason could spell trouble for a team that's made the playoffs five straight years. Offense should still be one of the best.

11) Kabul - no team lost more this offseason than the Bulls, who should reload over the next few sims and move up. Stilts took a major step back last season and is 31 now. Everyone else is under 30 and should be enough to keep them in the playoffs.

12) Little Rock - is it finally the year? Little Rock is the only franchise to never make the playoffs, finishing 5th only once. With two winning seasons in twenty years, LR should be better. Is Noberto the missing piece?

13) Istanbul - not much changes, and that's okay. The rotation is hitting their prime and should be one of the best in the league. Will they add any pieces? With some uncertainty above them, this team could push for a playoff spot with a big addition or two.

14) Seoul - the rebuild started last season. Can they make enough moves to hop back up the standings this season? Not having Goerts at the start of the season won't help, but there's still lots of nice pieces. A rebound season from Vittore would be a good start.

15) Amsterdam - the bottom has fallen out and now Dam is back on their way up. This year is too soon, as a significant number of contributors will be under 23. The staff hasn't developed like they can - will they be hurt by getting shelled? ERAs include 8.6 and 7.2, some improvement here would help.

16) Miami - the rebuild is under way. They probably won't bottom out completely, but look to be a lock for a top five pick. There's some decent players in Wade, Bjorno, and Pale - but they are on the downturn of their careers. The lack of any kind of funds will make it tough for a quick climb over the coming years.

17) False Bay - the once dominant franchise has finished in the bottom two of the league in seven straight seasons. Getting out of the cellar would be a start, but it probably doesn't happen yet. Luckily, all big contracts are off the books by 2069.

18) Dublin - finished with the first overall pick and lost its second best player. Creswell is still elite, though he's tailed off and suffered an injury last year. Norman, Prignano, and Mitchell are among notable deaths over the past two seasons.
 

Orlando

Well-Known Member
Utopia Moderator
We won 100 games, but it was a tale of two halves. We spent the first with the best record in the WBL and then we traded Mendoza and Ortiz (arguably the best player in the league). Bigger losses than Funk and Ice Man. Unless I sell more pieces, I still think Cairo isn't quite there and Dam will pass us all soon.
 
  • Like
Reactions: NML

Wolfman21

Well-Known Member
Not sure how this season is gonna go for the Bulls. Let a bunch of guys that would lead us to a .500 record in the rotation go and replaced them with higher upside arms...just depends on if theyre ready yet or not. I think we have as good a chance as any to secure a playoff spot in the SL though
 
  • Like
Reactions: NML

NML

Well-Known Member
I think Little Rock is probably another year away - they'd need a lot to go right to sneak in - so yet again it's four teams (Kabul, UK, Buffalo, BA) for two spots. ND might fall a bit though unless they get active these next couple weeks.
 

Yankee151

Hot Girl Summer
Well in Buffalo we have a strange problem where we have too many guys for each position without very many standout guys. There's so many guys in AAA where one of them could be the piece we're looking for but he's blocked by 5 other players. Even the pitching staff is that way. We could probably call up Honeyfield, Seal, and Wilson and they all have a shot at doing good but there's no guarantee they will. We also need to find the best way to incorporate Kimya, Castro, and Requero in the Infield as all 3 are great defenders. We'll see how things go.
 

doh

THANK YOU Dermott McHeshi
Glad to see someone else go for it...

I think we are in the 95 win range again. The offense is very 'meh' but the pitching and defense will be better. 2B/SS/LF will be better but 3B/RF probably worse. Also good that I finished the year I think 43-15 or something over the final two months. Happy though I have some reinforcements position player wise ready to come in.

Pitching wise I do have some depth this year but I agree they're starting to age. I may try to limit PC and innings more this year. I'm excited about this MLIFA I got too. Probably need more power in the lineup.

I agree Buffalo has made some good moves and there are tons of ways to fill holes. FA is great this year with lots of quality players still out there.
 

NML

Well-Known Member
there are tons of ways to fill holes

Mick.gif
 

Travis7401

Douglass Tagg
Community Liaison
Travis is in Europe so I may be a rough season unless his proxy steps in.

I just got back fwiw. First export tonight! Plan was to fill the team holes through promotion rather than FA. Both the lost players were rentals and they played well, but they weren't really in the long term polan. Got ACE COOMBES(plz lord let that control come in) coming up to replace Rubio, though he might struggle as a Frosh. Nuri sucked last year as a first year player, but he'll get the start at 3B and then Pinky slides over to DH or maybe learns 1B? He's still a solid 3B, but I think my team is better with him elsewhere.
 

TonyGin&Juice

Sucking off Lawn Guy Land hobos.
I am shooting for the 1-1 and hoping there's either a legit bat with power or a starter that already has 50 control and 80 STUFF potential. With my luck we'll pull a 2008 Mariners and draft another bum at 1-2 and be shit for another decade. But who needs to win at silly simulation baseball games when ur busy winning in life.

Big props to my dear friend @Orlando helping me get the rebuild going. Really sad day when Randy Gadd left but that's $78M we'd get nothing out of but an ok bat and bad defense. Right now moving him with Suds McKenzie looks like it's freed up about $13M in salary ($12M EXTREMELY POPULAR PLAYER penalty) and we've got a good D-first team for the next 5-10 seasons while I right the dumbass wrongs I did after 2059. If the budget floor gets implemented I might just try for a top 3 pick the next five seasons since we're already projected to be at $104M next year. #blessed
 

Soonerfan09

Well-Known Member
No idea how Moscow is going to do this year. I think a lot of it depends on the pitching staff. Mintey can't have another down year like he did last season, and Knowles needs to be worth what I gave up to get him. Offensively, we are going to have some games when everyone is on and we can beat anyone, and other games where everyone is off and we can lose to anyone. I can see us finishing anywhere between 2nd in the league (if absolutely everything goes right for us, other teams have injuries/slumps) and 6th in the league (if everything goes wrong). Right now I will predict that we will at least be in the playoff hunt deep into September.
 

Yankee151

Hot Girl Summer
I am shooting for the 1-1 and hoping there's either a legit bat with power or a starter that already has 50 control and 80 STUFF potential. With my luck we'll pull a 2008 Mariners and draft another bum at 1-2 and be shit for another decade. But who needs to win at silly simulation baseball games when ur busy winning in life.

Big props to my dear friend @Orlando helping me get the rebuild going. Really sad day when Randy Gadd left but that's $78M we'd get nothing out of but an ok bat and bad defense. Right now moving him with Suds McKenzie looks like it's freed up about $13M in salary ($12M EXTREMELY POPULAR PLAYER penalty) and we've got a good D-first team for the next 5-10 seasons while I right the dumbass wrongs I did after 2059. If the budget floor gets implemented I might just try for a top 3 pick the next five seasons since we're already projected to be at $104M next year. #blessed
FWIW, all the 1st rounders that draft were godawful outside Stras, Trout, and Paxton. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2009_Major_League_Baseball_draft
 

NML

Well-Known Member
POST SPRING TRAINING RANKINGS

1) Halifax - no movement. Fax didn't add anyone through trade or FA, but is still more likely to break their own win record then to finish in second.

2) Las Vegas - no movement. A steady second, LV is a good bet to win the north.

3) Helsingborg - no movement. Spent the off season collecting salary dumps and prospects. Probably didn't need to do much to make the playoffs again, but also won't reach 100 wins like last season.

4) Cairo - no movement. They've closed the gap with Borg and have given themselves a real shot at home field in the opening round.

5) Kabul - up. The Bulls snag three nice pieces late in the offseason and likely did enough to stay in the playoff picture. The rebuilt rotation is a question mark.

6) Buffalo - down. Adding journeyman Dobbie Pals is a great snag, even at a slightly high rate. With a mostly quiet break for the rest of the south, they are well positioned for a playoff run.

7) United Kingdom - up. Grabbed arguably the best bat in FA just before ST in Arnel and a couple bullpen pieces. ND and BA stood pat, can they pass them? Will Buffalo or Little Rock skip over UK?

8) Lisbon - down. They brought back Romero, but he looks like he's starting to decline. Will there be enough improvement in the young players to make up the difference?

9) North Dakota - down. ND and Moscow battled for worst offseason right until the end, when Moscow signed Faddei Mitichkin. Can they stay healthy? The fifth starter is a question mark.

10) Moscow - no movement. Faddei is a fine replacement for Dobbie, but other departures were filled internally. That could spell trouble in a competitive north.

11) Buenos Aires - down. BA mostly stood pat, with its biggest signing likely being a pitcher who was out of the league last season. Is that enough to get over Mount 500?

12) Amsterdam - up. They had the best offseason of any team, but they still only won 67 games last season. The rotation outside of Rubio is one of the worst, especially with Groot moving to the bullpen.

13) Little Rock - down. They should be improved, but look to be a year away from the rest of the pack. Horsley staying healthy is a requirement of a playoff run.

14) Istanbul - down. Improvement is expected, but they are likely a year or two away from a realistic challenge. Trending up, however.

15) Seoul - down. They are in an interesting spot: with three studs still on the team and a ton of financial flexibility, this could be a quick rebuild. They could also move those pieces on for big hauls.

16) Miami - no movement. Snagging Watters on a one year deal is nice, although not helpful to the tanking. The rebuild would be helped with some opt outs by Ploeg and Bjorno over the next few years.

17) False Bay - no movement. They were involved in some bids on big FAs, but they either resisted the urge or couldn't keep up - either way, they grabbed two nice IFAs and otherwise kept their money for future use.

18) Dublin - no movement. held onto everything this off season, likely with a focus on next year when they'll have very few big contracts left. Creswell could land the Distillers a massive haul, but will they let him retire in Ireland?
 
Last edited:

Orlando

Well-Known Member
Utopia Moderator
NML not impressed by Ulrik or any of my FA signings. You did sneak in and grab Muli from me though.
 
  • Like
Reactions: NML

Travis7401

Douglass Tagg
Community Liaison
Riggers losses only on paper. Only the 5th starter might be worse. Better in the infield, outfield and bullpen through promotions and one trade. If Balbuena is healthy, then we're better than last year!
 

doh

THANK YOU Dermott McHeshi
Amsterdam is going to win 85-90 games if those SP come along easy. That lineup is scary.

We're going to need no injuries and some younger players (Vreke, Pinsett, O'Connell) to come along. Also will need to trade for a bat or two. I'm not going to score a ton of runs.
 

fignuts

See You Next Wednesday
LV - give some respect to the defending champs
Fax - still a 100+ win bunch after letting a few guys walk to FA
Borg - might not have signed their targets in FA, but still a 95+ win ballclub
NDR - don't see much, if any, falloff from a mid-90 win team last season
Cairo - patched their FA holes; will things break to grab an upper playoff seed?
Kabul - success will depend heavily on the young arms and health of the OF
AMD - made immense strides over the last calendar year; with enough dev budget and offensive production, the arms could flourish
Moscow - stood pat overall this offseason; is it enough for a playoff spot in Varisty?
UK - is Muli enough to help extend this lineup?
Buff - always lots of action with these 2 wildcards at the helm; should compete for a playoff spot in JV
Lisbon - Clarridge and Gorman are waiting in the wings; do they have enough pitching to push for a spot?
BA - can they work some magic and sneak into the playoffs for a 5th consecutive year?
IST - formidable 1-2-3; is there enough offense to help the arms, though?
LRM - I like the Roger signing; question Horse for 6M
Seoul - will be interesting to see the haul the Glow receive for the remaining studs on the roster
MIA - Watters looks like a flip piece to help with this rebuild; Juice the lone bright spot
FB - Another year, another 1-1 bid
DUB - Is Creswell a Dubliner for life or a bargaining chip for some much needed farm help?
 

Orlando

Well-Known Member
Utopia Moderator
I think we repeat last years results since no one wanted to trade with me. We basically replaced Mendoza with Sanchez and Ortiz with Ulrik. I signed a couple pen pieces and a RHB OF which was needed.
 
Top